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Fenwal to Host Webinar on the Safety of 2-Unit Red Cell Collections From Young Donors

Posted on: Tuesday, 23 June 2009, 15:47 CDT

Published study shows young donors experience a lower rate of adverse reactions on automated 2-unit red cell collection systems

LAKE ZURICH, Ill., June 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Fenwal Inc. announced today it is hosting a live, online lecture by Richard J. Benjamin, M.D., Ph.D., chief medical officer of the American Red Cross, who will review the published study, "The relative safety of automated two-unit red cell procedures and manual whole blood collection in young donors." Dr. Benjamin is the lead author of this study, which will appear this fall in the peer-reviewed journal Transfusion. An advance copy is available from the journal's website at www3.interscience.wiley.com/journal/122457574/abstract or from Fenwal's website at www.fenwalinc.com.

The webinar will take place Monday, June 29, at noon Eastern Time. Participants must register for this free event at www.fenwalinc.com. A replay of the webinar will be available within 24 hours following the meeting. This webinar is a professional development opportunity for blood center professionals.

The study evaluated 4.35 million whole blood donations and more than 200,000 two-unit red cell collections at 26 regional American Red Cross blood centers. According to the study, two-unit red cell collections, as currently performed by the American Red Cross, are associated with a lower rate of immediate adverse reactions in young donors and have a comparable safety profile in older donors.

Adverse reactions occurred infrequently and of these, more than 96% were minor in severity. The authors state that "Overall, our data support the general safety of 2RBC procedures with the donor selection criteria in place in the American Red Cross and provide a strong rationale for recruitment of young donors."

The study also found that regional blood centers using Fenwal's ALYX(R) automated collection system reported a lower rate of adverse reactions than centers using a competitive device. The authors describe this finding as hypothesis-generating given limitations of the study's design such as variations in regional blood-center reporting, and recommend further study.

"This study is unique in the size of the data set, which includes more than 4.5 million blood donations," said Hiroshi Uchida, chief technology officer for Fenwal, Inc. "The findings should give blood centers and donors confidence in the safety, effectiveness and value of automated blood collection, especially for young donors, as well as the exceptional performance of Fenwal's technology."

The authors of the study explain that two-unit red cell collections via automation offer several advantages, including better inventory management of needed blood types and more consistent and controlled component quality. Consequently, blood centers are increasingly recruiting donors for two-unit red cell collections and more procedures are being performed at high school and college blood drives.

About Fenwal

Fenwal Inc. is a global medical technology company focused on improving blood collection, separation, safety and availability for patient care. Fenwal became an independent company in 2007, but its roots go back to 1949 with the founding of Fenwal Laboratories. Fenwal developed the first flexible, disposable container for blood collection, eliminating complications associated with glass containers and allowing blood to be separated into therapeutic components. Today, the company's products and advanced collection and separation technologies are used throughout the world to help ensure a safe and available supply of lifesaving blood and blood products. Fenwal Inc. is based in Lake Zurich, Illinois. For more information, please visit www.fenwalinc.com.

FENWAL and ALYX are trademarks of Fenwal, Inc.

SOURCE Fenwal Inc.

Source: PR Newswire

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